Panaji: Almost a week after Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant visited Melaulim village in Sattari taluka to meet the villagers opposing proposed IIT campus in their village, local MLA and Health Minister Vishwajit Rane has said that “sentiments of the people are important but so are also infrastructure projects that would transform the constituency.”
In a statement issued here on Saturday, Rane without mentioning IIT or Chief Minister’s visit to the project site on this week, said that green projects like educational institutes are required for the development of the constituency.
Rane represents Valpoi Assembly constituency in Sattari taluka, which covers Melaulim village, where people have been opposing setting up of IIT campus.
The minister said “as far as I am concerned, people’s sentiments are most important but we have to also stand for certain values and certain infrastructure projects which will transform the constituency.”
“The infrastructure projects are very much required for Sattari’s development,” he said recalling the works undertaken by his father and former Congress Chief Minister Pratapsingh Rane for the constituency.
“The development which my father did for Sattari, cannot be replicated,” he said.
Rane said that he totally supports the infrastructure project in his constituency because it is not possible to “transform Goa” without proper projects like educational hubs and deemed universities.
“I totally support such project. I am passion driven and infrastructure project oriented because I strongly believe that without proper infrastructure and without educational project how do we transform rural goa,” he said.
Rane expressed his gratitude towards BJP leader Amit Shah, ex-CM Manohar Parrikar, current CM Pramod Sawant and State BJP Chief Sadanand Shet Tanavade for providing all the necessary help to bring in development in Sattari taluka. He reiterated that he is committed towards his journey in the BJP.
“Development of Sattari has been a passion of my father Pratapsingh Rane and myself. I have learnt a lot from him and Manohar Parrikar. Passion for development and the people should be there. Ultimately when people elect you, you need to serve them,” he said.
“Reason why say is that there are fly by night operators who come and suddenly disappear misguiding the people of Goa. we have seen this happening in the past.”
Referring to the developmental works, Rane said that he has managed to get all the clearances for the road from Kumthal to Bandirwada, which was pending for 12 years. He said that the file is currently pending with the chief minister for financial and expenditure approval, which he has assured to give soon.
“This is only road which is pending as far as Sattari is concerned. There is another Kabrasthan road in Valpoi, which is also pending. These two are my pending works.”
“Sattari is the only constituency which has water treatment plants in every Panchayat. It is there I learnt from my father who suggested that there should be water treatment plant in every part so that the water is supplied to everyone. Sattari we have spent more than Rs 100-150 crore on bandharas and water augmentation and reservoirs.”
“Many irrigation dams are constructed. Ultimiately we are trying to see that all these bandharas where we put water, we put water treatment plant there and use it for lift irrigation and drinking water augmentation.”
